It can be difficult to remember to brush after every meal and floss every night, yet the reasons to take good care of our teeth are countless. Poor dental hygiene can lead to many problems that can be costly to treat like cavities, gum disease and discolored teeth. A healthy mouth also means a healthy and bright smile. The benefits of a good dental hygiene routine far outweigh the effort involved. Here are some tips on building better oral habits!
Did you know that studies show that it takes 30 days to build a habit? It may feel impossible that all the things you endeavor to do could simply feel natural and become an easy daily routine, but simple repetition of an action or task over time creates grooves in your brain so that it can almost seem to run on automatic. This works for both negative and positive habits, so the key is to keep practicing your desired habits for at least 30 days!
You may have thought in the past that you weren’t very good at building habits, but we all build habits every day without knowing it. Have you ever been driving home from work and not known how you arrived home already, not been able to remember the last few landmarks or turns? That is because you have done this so many times that your brain has developed the grooves to make its processes more and more efficient.
The science behind how our minds develop habits is good news because it means that habits are not outside our control, we get to choose our habits to be the things we want to do, too. You’re better at building habits than you might have thought, so why not start building better oral habits? Here are some tips.
The main thing we need when starting out with new habits is reminders. Set up some cues or reminders to help you remember to brush your teeth after meals, before bed, and to include all the habits you’d like to develop such as brushing for a full 2 minutes and using floss and mouthwash once a day.
Ideas for reminders can range from putting a note in your phone’s to-do list or calendar, setting an alarm on your clock, posting some sticky notes on the mirror in the bathroom, or wearing a reminder such as a bracelet to cue your brain to the task when you see it.
There are even more creative options, too, such as giving your cat or dog a treat at a certain time every day when you are also supposed to complete a task. Once they get used to this, they won’t fail to remind you if you forget!
If you’ve gotten discouraged in the past about building better oral habits, don’t lose heart! You may have just not had the right tools to build the habits you wanted to. There are options available that might make things easier like flossing picks and interdental brushes to use instead of regular dental floss. Better tools with advanced features such as an electric toothbrush with a brushing app for your phone can also help to ensure your habits really are improving, and give you daily feedback and tips to help!
Talking to your dentist at your next exam may be helpful as well for making a plan towards building better oral habits in the future. An exam and cleaning can be a great launching pad to help you get started with your new commitment because you will want to maintain the clean, smooth feeling of your freshly polished teeth.
Today is a new day, a great opportunity to build the habits you choose!
Call our Midland Dental Office to make an appointment with a dentist who may be able to help you find out more about this topic, and improve your oral health.
Please call us at 432-218-4389 or fill out the form below to request an appointment.
It can be difficult to remember to brush after every meal and floss every night, yet the reasons to take good care of our teeth are countless. Poor dental hygiene can lead to many problems that can be costly to treat like cavities, gum disease and discolored teeth. A healthy mouth also means a healthy […]
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Dear Patient:
We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines, although normal may have a new meaning. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety. Based on guidelines from Governor Abbott and the Texas State Dental Board, we will return for patient care on May 5th 2020. Until then, we will provide emergency care.
Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.
Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies’ recommendations.
You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example:
• Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office. Please, for safety of others, be honest with your answers.
• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.
• You will be provided a mask to use while waiting in our office if you do not have one.
• Your temperature will also be taken upon arrive in our office.
• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. To comply with social distancing, seating will be limited.
• You will be asked not to bring anyone with you to the appointment unless absolutely necessary. If you do not have childcare, then your appointment will need to be rescheduled to a later date.
• You may be asked to wait in your vehicle and check in by phone call or text. If you bring someone with you, they will be asked to wait in your vehicle
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.
We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at (432)687-0041 or visit our website at www.myhealthcentereddentistry.com.
Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends.
Sincerely,
Dentist and Team
Dear Patient:
We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines, although normal may have a new meaning. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety. Based on guidelines from Governor Abbott and the Texas State Dental Board, we will return for patient care on May 5th 2020. Until then, we will provide emergency care.
Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.
Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies’ recommendations.
You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example:
• Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office. Please, for safety of others, be honest with your answers.
• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.
• You will be provided a mask to use while waiting in our office if you do not have one.
• Your temperature will also be taken upon arrive in our office.
• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. To comply with social distancing, seating will be limited.
• You will be asked not to bring anyone with you to the appointment unless absolutely necessary. If you do not have childcare, then your appointment will need to be rescheduled to a later date.
• You may be asked to wait in your vehicle and check in by phone call or text. If you bring someone with you, they will be asked to wait in your vehicle
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.
We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at (432)687-0041 or visit our website at www.myhealthcentereddentistry.com.
Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends.
Sincerely,
Dentist and Team
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